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The Best American Science Writing 2003
In his introduction to The Best American Science Writing 2003, Dr. Oliver Sacks, "the poet laureate of medicine" New York Times writes that "the best science writing . . . cannot be completely 'objective' -- how can it be when science itself is so human an activity? -- but it is never self-indulgently subjective either. It is, at best, a wonderful fusion, as factual as a news report, as imaginative as a novel." Following this definition of "good" science writing, Dr. Sacks has selected the twenty-five extraordinary pieces in the latest installment of this acclaimed annual. This year, Peter Canby travels into the heart of remote Africa to track a remarkable population of elephants; with candor and tenderness, Floyd Skloot observes the toll Alzheimer's disease is taking on his ninety-one-year-old mother, and is fascinated by the memories she retains. Gunjan Sinha explores the mating behavior of the common prairie vole and what it reveals about the human pattern of monogamy. Michael Klesius attempts to solve what Darwin called "an abominable mystery": How did flowers originate? Lawrence Osborne tours a farm where a genetically modified goat produces the silk of spiders in its milk. Joseph D'Agnese visits a home for retired medical research chimps. And in the collection's final piece, Richard C. Lewontin and Richard Levins reflect on how the work of Stephen Jay Gould demonstrated the value of taking a radical approach to science. As Dr. Sacks writes of Stephen Jay Gould -- to whose memory this year's anthology is dedicated -- an article of his "was never predictable, never dry, could not be imitated or mistaken for anybody else's." The same can be said of all of the good writing contained in this diverse collection.
288 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2003
3 people are currently reading
148 people want to read
About the author
Oliver Sacks
102 books9,762 followersOliver Wolf Sacks, CBE, was a British neurologist residing in the United States, who has written popular books about his patients, the most famous of which is Awakenings, which was adapted into a film of the same name starring Robin Williams and Robert De Niro.
Sacks was the youngest of four children born to a prosperous North London Jewish couple: Sam, a physician, and Elsie, a surgeon. When he was six years old, he and his brother were evacuated from London to escape The Blitz, retreating to a boarding school in the Midlands, where he remained until 1943. During his youth, he was a keen amateur chemist, as recalled in his memoir Uncle Tungsten. He also learned to share his parents' enthusiasm for medicine and entered The Queen's College, Oxford University in 1951, from which he received a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in physiology and biology in 1954. At the same institution, he went on to earn in 1958, a Master of Arts (MA) and an MB ChB in chemistry, thereby qualifying to practice medicine.
After converting his British qualifications to American recognition (i.e., an MD as opposed to MB ChB), Sacks moved to New York, where he has lived since 1965, and taken twice weekly therapy sessions since 1966.
Sacks began consulting at chronic care facility Beth Abraham Hospital (now Beth Abraham Health Service) in 1966. At Beth Abraham, Sacks worked with a group of survivors of the 1920s sleeping sickness, encephalitis lethargica, who had been unable to move on their own for decades. These patients and his treatment of them were the basis of Sacks' book Awakenings.
His work at Beth Abraham helped provide the foundation on which the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function (IMNF), where Sacks is currently an honorary medical advisor, is built. In 2000, IMNF honored Sacks, its founder, with its first Music Has Power Award. The IMNF again bestowed a Music Has Power Award on Sacks in 2006 to commemorate "his 40 years at Beth Abraham and honor his outstanding contributions in support of music therapy and the effect of music on the human brain and mind".
Sacks was formerly employed as a clinical professor of neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and at the New York University School of Medicine, serving the latter school for 42 years. On 1 July 2007, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons appointed Sacks to a position as professor of clinical neurology and clinical psychiatry, at the same time opening to him a new position as "artist", which the university hoped will help interconnect disciplines such as medicine, law, and economics. Sacks was a consultant neurologist to the Little Sisters of the Poor, and maintained a practice in New York City.
Since 1996, Sacks was a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters (Literature). In 1999, Sacks became a Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences. Also in 1999, he became an Honorary Fellow at The Queen's College, Oxford. In 2002, he became Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Class IV—Humanities and Arts, Section 4—Literature).[38] and he was awarded the 2001 Lewis Thomas Prize by Rockefeller University. Sacks was awarded honorary doctorates from the College of Staten Island (1991), Tufts University (1991), New York Medical College (1991), Georgetown University (1992), Medical College of Pennsylvania (1992), Bard College (1992), Queen's University (Ontario) (2001), Gallaudet University (2005), University of Oxford (2005), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (2006). He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2008 Birthday Honours. Asteroid 84928 Oliversacks, discovered in 2003 and 2 miles (3.2 km) in diameter, has been named in his honor.
Sacks was the youngest of four children born to a prosperous North London Jewish couple: Sam, a physician, and Elsie, a surgeon. When he was six years old, he and his brother were evacuated from London to escape The Blitz, retreating to a boarding school in the Midlands, where he remained until 1943. During his youth, he was a keen amateur chemist, as recalled in his memoir Uncle Tungsten. He also learned to share his parents' enthusiasm for medicine and entered The Queen's College, Oxford University in 1951, from which he received a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in physiology and biology in 1954. At the same institution, he went on to earn in 1958, a Master of Arts (MA) and an MB ChB in chemistry, thereby qualifying to practice medicine.
After converting his British qualifications to American recognition (i.e., an MD as opposed to MB ChB), Sacks moved to New York, where he has lived since 1965, and taken twice weekly therapy sessions since 1966.
Sacks began consulting at chronic care facility Beth Abraham Hospital (now Beth Abraham Health Service) in 1966. At Beth Abraham, Sacks worked with a group of survivors of the 1920s sleeping sickness, encephalitis lethargica, who had been unable to move on their own for decades. These patients and his treatment of them were the basis of Sacks' book Awakenings.
His work at Beth Abraham helped provide the foundation on which the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function (IMNF), where Sacks is currently an honorary medical advisor, is built. In 2000, IMNF honored Sacks, its founder, with its first Music Has Power Award. The IMNF again bestowed a Music Has Power Award on Sacks in 2006 to commemorate "his 40 years at Beth Abraham and honor his outstanding contributions in support of music therapy and the effect of music on the human brain and mind".
Sacks was formerly employed as a clinical professor of neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and at the New York University School of Medicine, serving the latter school for 42 years. On 1 July 2007, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons appointed Sacks to a position as professor of clinical neurology and clinical psychiatry, at the same time opening to him a new position as "artist", which the university hoped will help interconnect disciplines such as medicine, law, and economics. Sacks was a consultant neurologist to the Little Sisters of the Poor, and maintained a practice in New York City.
Since 1996, Sacks was a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters (Literature). In 1999, Sacks became a Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences. Also in 1999, he became an Honorary Fellow at The Queen's College, Oxford. In 2002, he became Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Class IV—Humanities and Arts, Section 4—Literature).[38] and he was awarded the 2001 Lewis Thomas Prize by Rockefeller University. Sacks was awarded honorary doctorates from the College of Staten Island (1991), Tufts University (1991), New York Medical College (1991), Georgetown University (1992), Medical College of Pennsylvania (1992), Bard College (1992), Queen's University (Ontario) (2001), Gallaudet University (2005), University of Oxford (2005), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (2006). He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2008 Birthday Honours. Asteroid 84928 Oliversacks, discovered in 2003 and 2 miles (3.2 km) in diameter, has been named in his honor.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 12, 2015
Picked through the stories. Only a few spoke to me.
Awande Galante is in in book about internship. Liked that one.
Awande Galante is in in book about internship. Liked that one.
August 22, 2022
Twenty years after publication, the articles in this collection remain relevant and timely. A great article concerning the Maine lobster fisheries may now be lacking in timeliness, since the warming of the Atlantic Ocean is clearly understood to be affecting the life cycle of lobsters, but it's examination of lobstermen and their knowledge of lobster life cycles and habitat is fascinating.
Many of the articles are wonderfully short, but never lacking in science and information. Atul Gawande discusses his early days as a medical intern in a hospital--and today he is a noted medical writer as well as a physician.
I skipped the articles on physics and astronomy. These have no interest for me.
Many of the articles are wonderfully short, but never lacking in science and information. Atul Gawande discusses his early days as a medical intern in a hospital--and today he is a noted medical writer as well as a physician.
I skipped the articles on physics and astronomy. These have no interest for me.
April 2, 2023
I picked this book at the Shrewsbury Public Library for 1$. learnt a lot of new things about the world from this book. The essays were very engaging .
December 29, 2024
Fantastic. Atul Gawande, Michaeal Klesius, and Peter Canby's were my favorites. A couple that didn't grip me but 90% of the articles were incredible.
May 23, 2013
The "Best American" books -- and particularly the Science and Science & Nature series -- are, hands down, the best time investment you can make. The writing is uniformly excellent; the topics are fascinating; the depth is astonishing. The editors are usually revered pop science figures (Oliver Sachs, Brian Greene, Mary Roach, etc.), and each year's selections reflect their particular discipline (and their amazement at the achievements outside of their field).
So anyway, I bought used copies of some older editions because they're cheaper. This is why I read the 2003 collection in 2013. Before I picked it up, I thought all the content would be old news. First of all, it's not. But more importantly, reading decade-old science articles will show you which fields are moving at lightning speed (bioengineering); which are moving through molasses (oceanography); and which have (sadly) halted altogether, sometimes after the death of an irreplaceable champion (taxonomy).
The articles were almost exclusively aimed toward nonspecialists, so they're easy to read (though the implications of the research recounted are sometimes not easy to grasp). The only downside to the Best American Science Writing books: they may end up being very expensive, since they're apt to convince you to go back to school and take up science.
So anyway, I bought used copies of some older editions because they're cheaper. This is why I read the 2003 collection in 2013. Before I picked it up, I thought all the content would be old news. First of all, it's not. But more importantly, reading decade-old science articles will show you which fields are moving at lightning speed (bioengineering); which are moving through molasses (oceanography); and which have (sadly) halted altogether, sometimes after the death of an irreplaceable champion (taxonomy).
The articles were almost exclusively aimed toward nonspecialists, so they're easy to read (though the implications of the research recounted are sometimes not easy to grasp). The only downside to the Best American Science Writing books: they may end up being very expensive, since they're apt to convince you to go back to school and take up science.
December 12, 2007
This book lived up to its title. The 25 essays were all interesting and well written and they covered a wide range of disciplines. My favorite essay was probably "1491." This essay considered the controversy concerning estimates of the pre-Columbian Native American population, its crash, and some of the ecological ramifications of that crash. "Shadow Creatures" an essay on crows, coyotes, and other creatures that are successfully adapting to suburban environs, "Stalking the American Lobster" an essay covering the controversy on how best to avoid overfishing of lobsters, and "Disorders Made to Order" an essay about drug companies promoting mental disorders and their treatments were especially interesting to me. I recommend this book as an enjoyable and educational read for anyone interested in the sciences.
January 12, 2010
A great collection of articles from the popular press. What impresses me is the diversity of subjects. Some of the articles should not, strictly speaking, be classified as "science", but were interesting, nevertheless. For example, the very first article was about a trip through the Congo rainforest, and the details simply brought the story to life. Here you can read about why leaves turn red (the reason is still in question), how people are using goats to create silk, phony science, the lobster ecology, an elderly woman suffering from Alzheimer's who remembers melodies from the past, emissions from black holes predicted by Stephen Hawking, and the writings of Stephen Jay Gould.
May 26, 2011
There is a lot of moving articles that I didn't think I'll be reading in a science writings. Can't wait to read them all..
and now that i did read them all i must say some were emotionally engulfing ( i know! unexpected in science articles) some were amazingly interesting. and others were merely boring (pure science talk can be boring)
these are the articles i liked!
- the forest primeval
- a world of their own
- the melody lingers on
- here there be dragons
- you dirty vole
- the mosquito's buzz
- got silk
- an embarrassment of chimpanzees
- common ground
and now that i did read them all i must say some were emotionally engulfing ( i know! unexpected in science articles) some were amazingly interesting. and others were merely boring (pure science talk can be boring)
these are the articles i liked!
- the forest primeval
- a world of their own
- the melody lingers on
- here there be dragons
- you dirty vole
- the mosquito's buzz
- got silk
- an embarrassment of chimpanzees
- common ground
August 31, 2009
It's sad, because this book had some very interesting essays, and then it had some really boring ones that I started but ended up skipping. I'll give it 3 stars, but it would have been 4 if they hadn't included the boring ones.
August 24, 2008
I love this series, and this was one of the better books in it. Shorter articles that were easy to read and comprehend.
Read
July 24, 2018Varies from boring to fascinating, but I am grateful for the fascination.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews